Four Vietnamese restaurants awarded one Michelin Star

Four Vietnamese restaurants have been recognized with one Michelin Star for their high-quality cooking and outstanding culinary experience that is worth a stop when travelling to Vietnam.

The awarded are Hibana by Koki, Gia and Tam Vi in Hanoi and Anăn Saigon in Ho Chi Minh City, the renowned French food guide Michelin announced on Tuesday.

According to Michelin, Anăn Saigon, a Vietnamese contemporary restaurant with Peter Cuong Franklin as chef, applies modern cooking techniques to street food recipes to create enticing flavours.

“Whether you order the fresh tuna tartare, a roasted duck-mozzarella-herb mini pizza, shrimp and pork tacos, or bone marrow wagyu beef pho (noodle soup), every dish is a masterclass of well-balanced flavours and textures,” it wrote.

Gia is described as a Vietnamese contemporary restaurant, run by chef Sam Tran. It received one Michelin Star for its menu that changes with the seasons and is inspired by Vietnamese culinary heritage. Deceptively complex, the beautifully crafted dishes showcase well-judged combinations of subtle flavours, with acidity and texture playing prominent roles.

Meanwhile, Hibana by Koki presents a theatrical experience at a 14-seat counter in the basement of Capella Hotel, with chef Hiroshi Yamaguchi skillfully and precisely cooking teppanyaki dishes rich in complex flavour.

"The menu features a distinctly decadent edge, epitomized by the premium ingredients flown in twice a week from Japan, such as abalone, spiny lobster, sea urchin, Yaeyama Kyori beef and Hokkaido hairy crab," the guide noted.

The fourth in the list, Tam Vi, is a vintage tea house that feels distinctly northern Vietnamese with its nostalgic collection of Chinese furniture and hand-written signs.

"They serve northern Vietnamese dishes with some central and southern options. The Vietnamese ham with periwinkle cha oc (snails) comes with fresh herbs, vegetables and rice vermicelli with fish sauce. The crab soup with canh cua mong toi (malabar spinach) has a subtle crab flavour in a clear broth,” according to Michelin.

The four above are among 103 restaurants in the two biggest cities of Vietnam present in the inaugural edition of the Michelin Guide Hanoi & Ho Chi Minh City.

The Bib Gourmand distinction, which highlights the restaurants within the Michelin Guide restaurant selection that stand out for value-for-money offers, was presented to 29 restaurants in Vietnam, including 13 in Hanoi and 16 in HCMC.

Prominent names are 1946 Cua Bac whose signature dish is the fried crab and rice porridge hotpot; Bun Cha Ta, which offers various ‘bun cha’ (rice noodles with Vietnamese grilled pork) and fried spring rolls; and Cha Ca Thang Long, with the highlight being ‘cha ca’, grilled catfish with turmeric, cooked at the table in a sizzling saucepan with spring onions and dill, and deliciously paired with vermicelli noodles, coriander, shrimp paste and peanuts for an intriguing combination of textures.

Seventy other restaurants (32 in Hanoi and 38 in HCMC) were named in the Michelin Selected group. Some examples are La Badiane (Hanoi), a charming French restaurant with fusion cuisine; Truffle (HCMC), a French contemporary restaurant; T.U.N.G dining (Hanoi), The Monkey Gallery Dining (HCMC) both with European contemporary cuisine; Akira Back (Hanoi) serving Japanese cuisine, and Octo (HCMC) serving Spanish cuisine.

Three Michelin Guide Special Awards were also handed out in Vietnam, with the Sommelier Award given to Yu Yamamoto from Michelin Selected restaurant Lua (Fire) in HCMC, the Service Award to chef Nguyen Thi Nu from Michelin Selected restaurant Vietnam House in HCMC, and the Young Chef Award to chef Sam Tran from one Michelin Star restaurant Gia in Hanoi.

The Michelin Guide was created in 1900 by the Michelin tire company to support the growth of automobile mobility. Since then, it has remained loyal to its original mission: to settle in mature gastronomic destinations to guide international travellers and local foodies to the best restaurants, highlight world culinary scenes and promote travel culture.

One Michelin star is awarded to restaurants for “high-quality cooking that is worth a stop,” two for “excellent cooking that is worth a detour,” and three for “exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey.”

According to the Michelin Guide website, there are currently over 3,000 Michelin-starred restaurants in nearly 40 different countries.